


Like Odd Puzzle Pieces

by chibimono



Series: The Other Side Of Awkward Silence [2]
Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: Angsty Schmoop, M/M, little brother
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-12-16
Updated: 2004-12-16
Packaged: 2017-10-29 21:22:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/324296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chibimono/pseuds/chibimono
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hazue enjoyed being with them both, or just Inui, or just his Niisan. He even liked just watching them together, because they were like puzzle pieces that just... fit.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like Odd Puzzle Pieces

Hazue had gotten used to seeing Inui around the house. The tall boy seemed to have made the Kaidoh residence his home. At first, Hazue had not been too keen on the presence of, who at the time seemed to Hazue, the four-eyed freak. But Hazue was nice to him, because he was Niisan’s sempai, one of Niisan’s friends.

One of Niisan’s very few friends.

Niisan’s… only friend.

At first, Hazue thought that this tall, bespectacled creep with ominous glasses was somehow after his brother. To corrupt him, to teach him horrible things, to use him as a school science project. When Inui came over to visit, Hazue lurked in the shadows and watched.

Inui liked to do odd things to his Niisan that made Niisan blush. Hiding in the closet, Hazue once watched as Inui told Niisan to undress to his underpants and then he measured Niisan all over with a measuring tape, making notes in his green notebook. Inui always had a green notebook. Inui said things about muscle mass, and strength-to-weight ratio, and several other things that went way over Hazue’s head at the time. Niisan listened intently while Hazue just thought Inui was feeding him crap.

But Hazue remained polite to Inui, though he skirted about him, because he was Niisan’s only friend… and Niisan seemed quite happy to have Inui as his friend, as his sempai.

After Niisan had been over to visit Inui’s home a few times, he began to ask Kaasan if Inui could eat dinner with them often. Kaasan agreed, of course, because Inui was such a good boy when he came to visit. But why eat dinner here, she asked Kaidoh. Because his parents were never home, Niisan told her. He was always alone. And Hazue decided that was what made Inui so weird.

Some weeks it seemed as if Inui was there every other day. Other weeks, he was only around once in a while. Hazue tried to stay out of their way, but he began to like watching Inui, because Inui was just so peculiar. Inui could look at anything, and then start writing in his notebook. Once, while they were eating dinner, Hazue excused himself early just to sneak a peek inside the notebook. It had measurements and angles, calculations and equations. It had information about tennis, about how his Niisan played tennis, about their family, even stuff about Niisan’s room. Oddly, there was a diagram of Niisan’s room, then another diagram on the next page of Niisan’s room changed around to follow the Chinese custom of Feng Shui, and then another diagram of Niisan’s room in comparison to what must have been Inui’s own room. It was a notebook of information on just Niisan.

Why would Inui want all of that? Was he some sort of pervert?

Niisan said that Inui was smart and good, and glad that Inui was his sempai. The only thing he did not like about Inui was the vegetable juice he made, but Niisan said he could overlook that. It was just a hobby that Inui had, and everyone had hobbies, right Hazue? Of course. Because Hazue had the hobby of watching Inui to see what he was doing to his Niisan.

But what ever Inui was doing, other than the juice, seemed to make Niisan happy. So, Hazue remained on Inui-watch to make sure it stayed that way.

There were times when Inui would try to talk to Hazue, asking how was school, asking what his interests were, asking if he could help with homework. Those first few times, Hazue politely turned Inui down. Inui was no more persistent then when he first began to ask, but eventually Hazue gave in. This would give him a chance to watch Inui directly, instead of secretly. They talked about homework, they talked about school, they talked about science, they talked about computer games. Hazue decided that while Inui was strange and seemed to be stalking his family, he was not so bad of a person.

Hazue began to enjoy seeing Inui come to visit. Niisan always seemed both calm and wound up at the same time, as if he were excited to see Inui, too, but did not want to show it. Many times, all three of them would sit in front of the television and play video games together. While Niisan was good to play against because he was so determined to win, Inui made for a better opponent just because he was so much harder to beat with his quick mastery of characters and odd ability to predict moves before they were executed. Yes, Hazue began to like Inui and could see why Niisan liked him around so much.

Things were going fine for years. Hazue enjoyed being with them both, or just Inui, or just his Niisan. He even liked just watching them together, because they were like puzzle pieces that just… fit. Inui was always alone at home, and Niisan was just one of those persons that was always alone anyway, and to Hazue, they made a match. He was glad they were friends, sempai and kohai. They would not be lonely with each other.

It was one day… in the year Kaidoh began his second to last year of high school… that things seemed to just up-end themselves. Inui had not come around very much for the past few weeks, and when he did visit, he was never around for long. It was odd, because, to Hazue, it seemed like they could not talk to each other. Well, more like… they had something to say, but just could not. And it looked as if it was hurting them both. By then, Hazue liked Inui very much and considered him another brother, and he did not want to believe that Inui was hurting Niisan somehow. But after Inui had left that one day, Hazue watched Kaidoh lean back against the door…

Niisan… he looked as if his heart was breaking.

“He’s going to Todai,” Niisan said, to which Hazue nodded, knowing this already.

“He’s leaving next year, Hazue… I’m… I don’t… He might… not come back…”

Hazue could say that he had never seen his Niisan afraid… until that day. He was afraid to speak to Inui about Todai, about coming home, about visiting their house again. Hazue just knew it… Niisan was afraid that Inui would never come back.

Looking at his Niisan, Hazue understood why. Because if Inui left him, Niisan would be alone again. And after not being alone for so long, it was hard to go back. But as smart as Hazue liked to think he was, he was unable to tell his Niisan how to change what he felt, or tell his Niisan what he could do… His Niisan would just have to find out for himself.

And maybe, because Inui was so good at it, he could help Niisan. After all, sempais always take care of their kohais.

It was several months before Niisan came home happy again. It was late, and he was sorry he had stayed out so long after dark. He and Inui had a talk, and it was an important one. Niisan finally decided he would become a professional tennis player. And Inui would be his coach, and in fact, he was going to Tokyo Daigaku to learn to become the best coach he could be. Kaasan said that Inui was such a good sempai, that he would go so far as to be the best for Niisan.

Niisan was smiling, the happiest Hazue had seen him in months. And Hazue knew it was because Inui would not let him be lonely.

Hazue was sure that Inui did not want to be lonely, too.


End file.
